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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
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10th March 2014 Paris, France
Bringing Russia and Ukraine to the negotiating table
I’ve talked before about the events in Kiev, at a time when they reminded me of the fall of the Berlin wall, and the extraordinary surge of freedom and independence that happened after that in Eastern Europe. Since then, things have got more difficult, because we’ve had what is obviously an intervention of Russian armed […]
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10th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Team Commonwealth, Team Turks and Caicos
Today we celebrate being a part of one of the world’s largest group of countries as we mark Commonwealth Day with a public holiday. From Canada to the Cook Islands, and from St Kitt’s to the world’s largest democracy, India, the Commonwealth embraces an extraordinary range of countries, including the Turks and Caicos, covering a third of the world’s […]
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10th March 2014 Geneva, Switzerland
The Game is Afoot
With all the talk these days of business and human rights it can only be a matter of time before Council sessions start getting corporate sponsors. When it happens I hope that manufacturers of beta blockers are first in line to put their name to the March session and that they have plenty of freebies for […]
10th March 2014 Warsaw, Poland
Say Cheese – Say Stilton
Piesek P is on the lookout for GREAT British Cheese in Poland – as he finds it he’ll let you know – just smile, Say Cheese at the Bell in famous Stilton Many people would say that Stilton is the King of British cheeses. It holds proud place at the Christmas lunch table or can […]
10th March 2014 New Delhi, India
Higher education on the move in Mysore
Last month, I spent a couple of days visiting research institutes in Mysore. I visited two organisations undergoing a process of great change, which is perhaps indicative of some of the trends in Indian Higher Education today. Universities in India are becoming much more significant players in research – contributing 39% of research publications (up […]
10th March 2014 Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
International Women’s Day 2014: Inspiring Change
This is a guest blog by Datin Paduka Hjh Adina Othman, Deputy Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, to commemorate International Women’s Day 2014. As we celebrate International Women’s Day 2014, I wish all women of the world a great year ahead of us. In the past decades, we have seen great advances in women’s […]
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9th March 2014 British High Commission, Kingston, Jamaica
The message is still gender equality
Today, gender equality is just as relevant as it was in 1910, when International Women’s Day was first celebrated. Despite legislative and social advancements in favor of women’s rights, women and girls in countries like Jamaica, continue to face discrimination,violence, and a lack of economic opportunity. For its part, Jamaica has enacted legislation, which coupled with […]
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9th March 2014 Warsaw, Poland
Say Cheese – Say Caboc
Piesek P is on the lookout for GREAT British Cheese in Poland – as he finds it he’ll let you know – just smile, Say Cheese from the Scottish Highlands Beautiful lochs and massive mountains, a pleasant summer and a harsh winter. Cheese making in Scotland belongs to the clans and the crofters. While the […]
9th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Guest Blog: "Number Two" by Abeer Qumsieh
I am happy to host a blog written by Mrs. Abeer Qumsieh who is a Human Developer from Better Business Jordan, and who works closely with our UKTI Jordan team. Should I accept the fact that my community encapsulated me or should I accept the fact that I am a woman. I wake up every […]
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8th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Time to Act
International Women’s Day has been observed in different forms since in the early 1900’s. But in recent years it has gone from strength to strength and become a much more genuinely global and shared event. With such a history, we should expect to see more progress on women’s issues. But women are still not paid […]